Canarsie Park

CONGRATULATIONS MAY EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH

The following individuals were awarded Employee of the Month for May on Monday, June 3. The Daily Plant applauds their accomplishments and thanks them for their hard work.

Julius Spiegel is the Commissioner’s Employee of the Month for May.

One of the original and longest serving borough commissioners, Julius Spiegel was appointed by Parks Commissioner Gordon Davis in 1981. An institution at Parks, and Brooklyn in particular, Commissioner Spiegel made the revitalization of Coney Island a top priority in the early days of his administration. He organized the initial clean up of the defunct Steeplechase area, paving the way for the introduction of concerts, festivals, and finally the new Keyspan Stadium. Behind the scenes, Commissioner Spiegel worked to secure $25 million in capital funding, organized new programming, and procured new amenities for the Coney Island Beach and Boardwalk area. His efforts have resulted in new comfort stations, shade-giving plantings, lifeguard stations, beach playgrounds, benches, drinking fountains and landscaped entrances to Coney Island. His vision and leadership have helped re-establish Coney Island as one of the premiere beaches in the country.

Sharon C. Bowman is the Bronx’s Employee of the Month for May.

Sharon joined Parks on January 7, 1985 and currently works as WEP Crew Chief at the Bronx Garage. She and her crew clean and beautify the Ranaqua grounds, including the garage, shops and administrative building. Sharon is also coordinating all trip ticket collection for the borough, which has the highest level of compliance of all boroughs in our new citywide tracking program. Sharon’s diligent efforts to monitor vehicle compliance are helping us to better deploy and manage our fleet. Focused and organized, Sharon was nominated by Chief of Operations John Bachman.

John Quinzi is Brooklyn’s Employee of the Month for May.

John joined Parks on February 24, 1986 and currently works as a WEP Crew Chief in District 18, which includes Marine Park, Canarsie Park, and a total of 59 ratable sites and over 1,000 acres. Despite maintaining one of Brooklyn’s largest districts, John and his crew have achieved 91% cleanliness rating so far in 2002. He and his crew scour the district, removing litter and cleaning graffiti. Recently John has taken on the added responsibility of driving the district packer, and helped design a new and more efficient route. Attentive and productive, John was nominated by PRM Fred Wilken.

Magary Aime is Capital Projects’ Employee of the Month for May.

Magary joined Parks on May 7, 1984 and currently works as Capital’s Supervisor for Electrical Engineering. Magary works closely with the Department of Transportation to coordinate lighting in and around parks. His efforts help keep parks safe and accessible after sun down, opening up parkland for evening concerts and moonlight strolls. Recently, he was instrumental in projects at Midland Fishing Pier in Staten Island and at Van Cortlandt Park Lake in the Bronx. For his brilliant and illuminating work, Magary was nominated by Chief of Design Paul Ersboll.

Higinio Caballero is Citywide Services’ Employee of the Month for May. Higinio joined Parks on April 27, 1977 and has worked as a driver trainer for PACT since the start of the program in 1993. Over the past 8 years, Higinio and PACT have helped over 800 participants earn regular driver’s licenses, and over 150 participants earn CDLs. These are critical job skills that help workfare participants find permanent jobs. In addition, Higinio and his team have trained nearly 300 full-time employees for CDLs, developing additional qualified drivers to keep Parks rolling. His guidance and instruction in safe driving have helped focus attention on proper and responsible use of Parks vehicles. Efficient, friendly and focused, Higinio was nominated by PACT Director Jill Weber.

Written by Keith Kerman and Sarah Coleman

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO IN THE PLANT

(Wednesday, June 14, 1989)

TITO PUENTE AND YOMO TORO GIVE PREVIEW OF SUMMERSTAGE SEASON

What do you do when you have exciting news and you want the whole world to know?

You shout it from rooftops, of course. That’s exactly what organizers of SummerStage did on the roof of the Arsenal building Monday as they announced the fourth season of the popular free public performance series at the Central Park Bandshell.

Salsa king Tito Puente and Latin music traditionalist Yomo Toro gave a preview of what’s to come with a rousing rendition of "Oye Como Va" atop the 141-year-old landmark Arsenal building.